William e



, W. E. SMITH.

(No Model.)

LEVER BUCKLE.

Patented Apr. 7, 1885.

fnuenfo'r:

UNITED STATES WILLIAM E. SMITH, OF ANSONIA, CONN ASSIGNOR TO JOHN C. HOTGHKISS,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF SAME PLAGE,'AND BURKARD GOODMAN, OF NEYV YORK, N. Y.

LEVER-BUCKLE.

EBPECIFICATIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 315,177, dated April 7, 1885.

Application fi'ed February 520, 1885. (No model.)

To all whom zit may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM E. SMITH, of Ansonia, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Lever-Buckles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to lever-buckles commonly used for suspenders and other webbing, and which are composed of a plate having at opposite sides ears which are bent over double, or into positions parallel with the main portion of the plate, and a lever which has its trunnionbearings in said cars.

In my United States Letters Patent No. 304,870, dated September 9, 1884-, is shown and described a buckle of the kind above re ferred to, in which the ears are depressed or set inward to form bearings for the lever-trunnious, which are held in such bearings by caps consisting of separate pieces secured thereto.

The object of my present invention is to dispense entirely with the two separate caps, and to so combine the lever with said ears as not only to securely hold the lever in place, but also to enable the lever to form a stay or tie-piece between the ears to prevent the ears from spreading.

The invention consists in a novel construction of the plate or frame and lever, and a novel manner of combining and connecting them together, as hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims, whereby the desired results are secured.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a back view of abuckle embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the plane of the dotted line to 00, Fig. 1, looking toward the left hand of said figure. Fig. 3 is a seetional view of the buckle plate or frame alone on the plane of the dotted line y Fig. 1, the lever being omitted. Fig. 4 is a plan of the buckle. Fig. 5 is a view of the blank from which the plate or frame is formed. Fig. 6 is a view of the blank from which the leveris formed; and Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the completed lever.

Similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all the figures.

A designates the plate or frame of the buckle, which is made of sheet-brass or other sheet metal. It may be of any ornamental shape desired, and, as here shown, is formed with an integral hook, a, and a spring-tongue, b, cut from the plate and deflected to bear against the inner side of the hook. At opposite sides the plate has ears 0, which are doubled or bent over and inward into positions parallel with the rear side of the plate. The inner edge portions of the earsOare stamped or defiected inward to form concave depressions d and minor depressions or offsets d, extending from the depressions d to the lower edges of the ears, and at the most distant edges of the depressions the ears are slit or have slots e. These slots greatly facilitate the formation of the depressions d d, and the ears on the inner sides of the slits or slots are depressed, while on their outer sides they are not depressed.

In Fig. 5 I have represented a blank for the plate or frame, having formed in it the slots 6 and the depressions d d, which are formed in the reverse side of the plate to that shown in Fig. 5, thereby producing raised portions or projections on the side or face shown in said figure.

B designates a lever, which is made from a blank of the form shown in Fig. 6. At the upper edge are serrations or teeth f, and at opposite sides are trunnious or pivots g, and beyond or at the outer ends of the trunnious g are ears 9. The lever is to be bent on the dotted line 1 shown in Fig. 6, thereby giving it the form shown in Fig. 7.

The manner of combining the lever and plate will be best understood from Figs. 1 and 2. The lever is of a width to just drop into the depressions d, and its trunnious or pivots 9 rest in the bearings formed by the depressions d and project beyond them and under the portions of the ears 0 which are beyond or outside the slots 6. The portions of the ears inward of the slots form bearings d for the lever-trunnious g, and the portions of the ears outside of said slots serve to retain the lever-trunnious in said bearings. The portion of the lever below the trunnious bears against and is supported by the portions of the ears 0 below the bearings d, and is thereby prevented from dropping inward upon the web. The lugs or ears project inward beyond the outer edges of the depressed por-v tions d, as best shown in Fig. 4, and enable the lever to serve asa tie-piece or brace connecting the ears 0 and preventing their spreading.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a lever-buckle, the combination, with the plate provided with ears doubled or bent inward and slotted, and having the portions of the ears inward of said slots depressed to form trunnion-bearings, of the lever having trunnions or pivots resting in said bearings and projecting beyond the slots and under the portions of the ears outside the slots, substantially as herein described.

2. In a lever-buckle, the combination, with the plate A, provided with the ears 0, having slots 6 and depressions d, forming trunnionbearings, of the lever B, having trunnions resting in said bearings, projecting under the portions of the ears outside said slots, and provided with ears g, which project inward on the outer sides of the depressed bearings d, substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

3. In a lever-buckle, the combination, with a plate, A, provided with ears 0, having slots 6 and the depressed bearings d, of the lever B, having trunnions g, which rest in said bearings and project under the portions of the ears outside the slots, the lever bearing against and being supported by the portions of the ears below the bearings d, substantially as herein described.

WVILLIAM E. SMITH. Witnesses:

JOHN D.- BALLOU, WM. H. PLUMM R. 

